Brainstorming: Non-blobbing achievements

[LanMisa]

Since a long time Wiz and Johan were making it harder and harder to blob all around the place since they want to encourage the players to build tall, well-developed Empires (or, rather, a mixture between these two forms) instead. At the same time we get massive-blob achievements like the Saxonese one, the Big Blue Blob or Black Jack - fundamentally different to the design team's intentions. Now, I don't know your opinions but I think that blobbing achievements in a non-blobbing environment make no sense, they reward players for keeping to their old ways - ways of playing that the developers actively try to end!

So I think that we need new and more creative achievements. I don't want to say that we need no-expansion achievements, as Expansion is the one key mechanic in the game, but ones where the expansion itself is not the most important thing (or not important at all). I'd like to see achievements where you need to do something strange. Something you'd normally not even think about, that is doable without reliance on RNG luck (I look at you, Die please Die! and the "becoming electorate" achievement), that are still difficult to achieve and that you feel good about getting. The Venetian trade is one prime example: You are forced to stay relatively small and need to think about creative ways to get the trade power or the money to fund your navy you need to get the achievement.

Feel free to post your ideas in this topic, I want to work together with you all to come up with some amazing achievements that will then be implemented in future patches/expansions.

 

[LanMisa]

My ideas so far:

Ideas for "something different":
- Unbelievable!: Have a country with 100% or more Religious unity while owning not a single(!) right-religious province. (For example, be a Protestant while only owning Catholic and Orthodox provinces)
- The Pantheon/Like in Rome: Own at least one Dharmic province and at least two of the following religious groups that must have different religions: Christian, Muslim, Dharmic, Eastern, Pagan, (This means that you need at lest two out of Catholic/Protestant/Reformed/Coptic/Orthodox, two out of Sunni/Shii/Ibadi, ...)
- The Two Towers: Own and core the provinces of Paris and (the one where current Tokyo would be in), both need a Cathedral built inside (Reference to the Eiffel Tower and the Tokyo Tower who are basically the same building, at the same time being a LotR reference, duh!)
- Absolutely Average: Have at least 200 development and in every single province you own the values for tax/production/manpower must be equal (that means 2/2/2 or 7/7/7 and so on)
- Jackpot: Own and core 7 provinces with 7/7/7 development each
- I'm out of here: Change your capital to a province outside the continent it currently resides in. (For example, emigrate from Europe to America, from Asia to Australia or Africa, from Africa to Europe.... Granada should not be able to get that achievement for obvious reasons)

Ideas for "building tall"
- The Seven Cities: Directly own and core (CNs don't count) one city in each of these regions: North America, South America, Europe, Africa, Asia, Oceania, Arabia. All of them need at least 20 tax development.
- The Small Giant: Have a country with 1000 or more development, be at Empire rank and own at most 25/30/40 provinces (number up to debate).
- The Underdog rises: Own a province that starts with at most 5 development and increase its total development to 40.

 

[Basileios Makedon]

Jackpot: Own and core 7 provinces with 7/7/7 development each

I love that

 

[lolada]

Jackpot: Own and core 7 provinces with 7/7/7 development each

I am gonna protest against such achievements, no please.

Its terribad and whats the point ?!?! Click around a bit and waste half an hour of time to get fancy numbers that do not mean anything. EU achievements should have some historical context or be interesting in some similar way (like Princess in castle or Die please die). Its not poker and loto game.

Another bad example:

Black jack achievement, own 21 subject with 5 provinces - thats already crap, it doesn't have anything with EU history and this theme in common. In game it goes this way, so i play the game conquer half world and paint the map nicely. And in the end player needs to just ruin everything by releasing vassals or create nations to have them at 21 x 5 size and get the icon. Then save and quit because its counter productive to split the country this way.

There's 1001 province achievement already to blob.. so now there's achievement to split all that land -_-

Full House achievement that doesn't belong to EU also, the same crap filler achievement as black jack..

Some games have achievement unlocked when you lose... "Game lost" achievement zzz

 

[LanMisa]

I am gonna protest against such achievements, no please.

Its terribad and whats the point ?!?! Click around a bit and waste half an hour of time to get fancy numbers that do not mean anything. EU achievements should have some historical context or be interesting in some similar way (like Princess in castle or Die please die). Its not poker and loto game.

Another bad example:

Black jack achievement, own 21 subject with 5 provinces - thats already crap, it doesn't have anything with EU history and this theme in common. In game it goes this way, so i play the game conquer half world and paint the map nicely. And in the end player needs to just ruin everything by releasing vassals or create nations to have them at 21 x 5 size and get the icon. Then save and quit because its counter productive to split the country this way.

There's 1001 province achievement already to blob.. so now there's achievement to split all that land -_-

Full House achievement that doesn't belong to EU also, the same crap filler achievement as black jack..

Some games have achievement unlocked when you lose... "Game lost" achievement zzz

See, I opened that thread to think about new achievements that are not blobbing achievements. Your post does not have anything to do with that. So please either add something productive here or refrain from posting unrelated things.

By the way, I already addressed the fact that RNG achievements are pretty bad. If you had carefully read my first post you should have know.

 

[lolada]

See, I opened that thread to think about new achievements that are not blobbing achievements. Your post does not have anything to do with that. So please either add something productive here or refrain from posting unrelated things.

By the way, I already addressed the fact that RNG achievements are pretty bad. If you had carefully read my first post you should have know.

My post has something to do with those and that is to eliminate bad suggestions with arguments why i think it is bad. If i didn't add my own suggestion it doesn't mean its unproductive. I don't want these thread to go with: "Build 7 provinces with 7/7/7 development?" suggestions because i think they are bad - there's already a guy thinking its great, so i have my right to say thats terrible. Thats already productive. I didn't say ALL posted suggestions are bad, but the one i quoted. If its not blobbing it doesn't mean its any good.

- The Two Towers: Own and core the provinces of Paris and (the one where current Tokyo would be in), both need a Cathedral built inside (Reference to the Eiffel Tower and the Tokyo Tower who are basically the same building, at the same time being a LotR reference, duh!)

- For example this suggestion is good and interesting (much better than the bad ones i mentioned), it gots some story behind it, interesting reference and something thats not trivial to achieve.

Player are supposed to "achieve" something with achievements. Build 7 provinces with 7/7/7 development? I don't feel i achieved anything with that?? Would you feel that "Heeey great i managed to build 7 provinces with 7/7/7 development." What a great feeling eghhh...
Its completely different than "Hey i managed to control Alexandria and Constantinople trade nodes with only 10 cities". Thats much better achievement. EU4 has already some not so good, if not plain bad achievements and we don't need more bad ones.

I don't think you understand what i meant when i mentioned (Princess in the castle and Die please die): These are non-blobbing achievements and even if they are funny and not strictly historical i said they were ok - not every achievement needs to be historical, conquer that and that. Kilwa achievement is also interesting (Queen of Mercury) it has some background story.
In general I do agree that RNG based achievements are bad and I complained about that earlier on these forums and i am glad they changed it. They are much less RNG now then they were before (Princess in the castle is easily achievable now with many countries, and Die please die was reduced 10 years and its easy to get with Timurids for example if you really want it).

 

[LanMisa]

Nah, I have absolutely no problem with somebody rejecting one of my ideas. If he explains why. What doesn't belong here, though, is to rant about prior Paradox achievements. This thread is about discussing new ones. And as I said, I do understand why you reject these two achievements, I don't like RNG achievements for the exact same reasons. Which I aready stated. In the first post.

I have no problem with some constructive critizism, like: "Let's make sure to avoid what Paradox did with this achievement XXX, because ....". But stating "XXX is terribad" helps nobody. Please mind how you phrase your input.

And please, let's end this discussion here. This thread is about thinking of new achievements. If you have to say something about the things above in this post please message me directly. Then we can discuss it between the two of us instead of clattering this post.

 

[Podrick Payne]

Like a Rolling Stone: As a Native American, migrate to both American coasts.

 

[BBMorti]

- The Two Towers: Own and core the provinces of Paris and (the one where current Tokyo would be in), both need a Cathedral built inside (Reference to the Eiffel Tower and the Tokyo Tower who are basically the same building, at the same time being a LotR reference, duh!)

^
I like this one, as long as you can't do it while starting as France. I could see an interesting game come out of it, especially if starting outside Europe

 

[LanMisa]

Like a Rolling Stone: As a Native American, migrate to both American coasts.

Can you specify this a bit, please? Do you mean to start as a one-province minor who has to travel from North America to South America? Or from West Coast to East Coast? Does this nation has to stay a OPM for this? Right now I'm not sure what exactly you mean. But it sounds interesting, that's for sure.

- The Two Towers: Own and core the provinces of Paris and (the one where current Tokyo would be in), both need a Cathedral built inside (Reference to the Eiffel Tower and the Tokyo Tower who are basically the same building, at the same time being a LotR reference, duh!)

^
I like this one, as long as you can't do it while starting as France. I could see an interesting game come out of it, especially if starting outside Europe

Hm...maybe. One thing I didn't mention before: Personally I try to stay away from too many country-specific achievements. These are good for making you play with nations you wouldn't even have thought of before (I certainly wouldn't have played Najd (but rather Oman) if not for Jihad), but at the same time it feels awkward having to play through a whole campaign just for one achievement....again and again. Since there are quite a bit around already I try to write more unspecific ones. But feel free to write country-specific ones if you so desire, to out-balance my own ideas!

 

[LanMisa]

Where it all ends: Own 10 provinces with estuaries.
Big Brother: Have a vassal/march with more development then you and less than 50% Liberty desire. No protectorates/PUs allowed. (I look at you, Poland-Lithania!)
You shall not pass!: Share a border with a rival that contains of at least 4 provinces and have a highest-level fort (that you can currently build) in each one of them.
(This one needs a name:) Form Australia (by playing as a released CN in that area) and control/core all provinces in the Oceania region. (Which means: The Phillipines, New Zealand, Micronesia and Polynesia, I think).
I can't believe this!: Be converted to a heretical religion twice during a single campaign. These religions must come from three different religious groups (That means, getting converted from Catholicism to Shia to Protestantism doesn't count. Going from Buddhism to Hinduism to Islam does.)

And a more blobbing one:
From Capetown to Cairo: Own a sequence of provinces that give you a direct land connection between the provinces of Cape and Cairo.

 

[Podrick Payne]

Can you specify this a bit, please? Do you mean to start as a one-province minor who has to travel from North America to South America? Or from West Coast to East Coast? Does this nation has to stay a OPM for this? Right now I'm not sure what exactly you mean. But it sounds interesting, that's for sure.

Native Americans (with CoP) can migrate to adjacent provinces as long as they are OPMs. This has a 5-year cooldown that can be reduced with Native ideas. My intent was that you would start out as a North American tribe and eventually migrate to the East Coast and the West Coast. They don't need to start on one coast or the other, they just need to migrate to both at some point.